Getting Started
The publication process requires planning. Before you start writing, take some time to understand what makes a good scientific paper, what journal editors are looking for, and how to choose the right journal for your manuscript.
Prepare to Write
To develop a strong manuscript, it’s important to take the time to learn about what makes a good scientific paper and what editors really want. As you begin the process of preparing to write, ask yourself: What story are you trying to tell? What does your paper represent?
Creating a Good Research Question
Successful translation of research begins with a strong question. How do you get started? How do good research questions evolve? And where do you find inspiration to generate good questions in the first place? It’s helpful to understand existing frameworks, guidelines, and standards, as well as learn from researchers who utilize these strategies in their own work.
Publishing Journal Articles: A Scientific Guide for New Authors Worldwide
Scientific advice for new authors, junior researchers, and graduate students to publish their scholarly work and advance their academic careers.
Five Steps to Critically Reading a Manuscript (PDF)
Guide from Harvard Catalyst on analyzing a manuscript. These five steps also apply when writing a manuscript.
Choose the Right Journal
Before you begin to write, consider where you would like to publish your manuscript as every journal has a unique audience, style, and structure. Also, submission requirements for each vary. The journals you target for submission will depend on your field of research, the topic of your study, and the significance of the findings.
Selecting a Journal for Publication: Criteria to Consider
This article reviews key considerations for evaluating and selecting a journal for publication.
Open Access Journals
There are two types of open access journals. The first type publishes in three ways: direct, delayed, and hybrid. Direct open access means that the entire journal is open access. The second way of publishing is delayed, which means the journal is subscription-based. Over time, the journal will shift to open access. The third way, hybrid open access, is also subscription-based, but the article’s author is required to pay a fee to grant open access for their manuscript.
The second type of open access journal is self-archiving by the author. This means you can present your work on your own website, your institution’s website, or in a subject repository such as PubMed.
Open Access Information for Journal Authors
Information Elsevier about open access journals which includes a link to their Journal Finder tool.
Your Guide to Publishing Open Access with Wiley (PDF)
Step-by-step guide to open-access publishing.
Six Licenses for Sharing Your Work (PDF)
Simple introduction to Creative Commons licenses.
Put it into Practice
The reflection questions below will help you get started on developing your manuscript. Before you begin writing, spend time thinking about and researching your own answers, and review this question list with your mentors and colleagues.
Where should you submit your manuscript?
Consider the audience:
- Who is the target audience of the journal?
- Who typically reads the journal?
- Will publishing in this journal reach the people who are most important for your research?
Consider:
- What is the journal’s impact factor?
- Why does impact factor matter?
What should you know about the journal to which you are submitting a manuscript?
- What are the submission requirements?
- Are there any specialized guidelines regarding the format of content? (e.g. the location of methods)
- What is the writing style of articles that are published?
- What are the general timelines for submission responses?
Next Step
Click on the box below to learn more about how to develop your manuscript.